The goal of this experiment is to eliminate as many variables as possible compared to the experiment on which this is based. We will attempt to seek out individuals who possess the same amount of athletic ability, control the background of the experimenting area and run a large number of tests. We will use 4 balls of varying colors, and ten individuals who will catch each ball one time under controlled conditions. The balls will be rolled down a ramp of a controlled length, angle and height above the ground, and the background of the experimenting area will be the same for every trial. Senses, such as hearing, will be eliminated as a variable through the use of earmuffs. The topside of the ramp will be obscured to the test participant, thus eliminating their ability to discern the proximity of the ball in relation to them. The ball will be rolled down the ramp at an unspecified time and the participant will be tasked with catching the ball when it comes off the ramp. We will be using a red, white, yellow, blue and orange ball. We will use three participants with similar athletic backgrounds and run five trials with each ball color. If time permits, we will also run trials where hearing is not diminished to determine its effect on reaction time. The objective of this experiment is to eliminate all possible variables and determine if color is truly a factor in the quickness of reaction time, perception ability and hand-eye coordination.
Procedure
For our procedure, we first needed a way to roll the ball to the subject so that it would be consistent every time. We needed the same speed, trajectory, and angle. To accomplish this, we attached a 33cm long cardboard tube to the ring stand as pictured below. The tube had a diameter of 10cm, just enough to fit our standard size wiffle balls through (also pictured below). We also put the ring stand mechanism on top of an 8cm high book. With the addition of the book, the bottom of the tube (where the ball would exit) was 43.5cm
Each of the ten test subjects were given a chance to catch each colored ball twice, making for a total of six balls each, and 60 trials overall. In order to eliminate all possible variables that may interfere with our data, we kept as many things controlled as possible. Each test subject faced the white wall pictured below at exactly the same angle and distance. This is what the subject saw:
In our preliminary testing, found that it was far too easy to catch the ball if you could hear it rolling down the cardboard tube. To eliminate this factor and keep our data purely based on human reaction time, we made the test subjects wear noise-cancelling earphones.
Each subject sat on the ground on their knees facing forward with their arms by their sides. After each ball rolled, we gave the subject a moment to assume the correct position again. This is what the position looked like:
Results
After 10 test subjects that all said they had an "extensive" background with sports and other athletics, these are our results:
Red Ball
Blue Ball
White Ball
Subject 1
0
1
2
Subject 2
1
1
2
Subject 3
0
0
0
Subject 4
1
1
0
Subject 5
2
1
1
Subject 6
1
1
2
Subject 7
0
2
2
Subject 8
2
1
1
Subject 9
0
0
0
Subject 10
1
0
0
TOTALS: 8 8 10
Out of 20 attempts, the 10 subjects caught the red ball a total of eight times.
Out of 20 attempts, the 10 subjects caught the blue ball a total of eight times.
Out of 20 attempts, the 10 subjects caught the white ball a total of ten times.
The fact that the red and blue ball's p values were exactly the same suggests that the colors red and blue have absolutely no effect on reaction time under our controlled conditions. However, there was a difference, although statistically insignificant, between the white balls and the red balls and blue balls.
Conclusions
While we sought to find a correlation between the ball color and ability to react, no obvious relationship was found. The ability to catch the balls in the small span of time with limited external stimuli seemed to be predominantly influenced by the individuals athletic and/or natural ability and not the color of the ball. This is evidenced by the trend of individuals catching either a majority of the balls or few balls whatsoever. Without a massive amount of data, we believe that it is difficult to come to results that may disprove the null hypothesis. It is possible that the p value obtained by comparing the red and blue balls to the white balls may reach a statistically significant number, although this is only a hypothesis. Another interesting aspect of the experiment to consider was that the background was white in color and the white balls were caught more times than the other colors. There may be a correlation between background color, object color and reaction time, and we recommend that any attempting to expand upon this experiment explore this particular topic.
Breitmeyer, Bruno G., and Joshua I. Breyer. "Effects of Background Color on Reaction Time to Stimuli Varying in Size and Contrast: Inferences about Human M Channels." Vision Research 34.8 (1994): 1039-045. Print.
Table of Contents
The Effect of Color on Reaction Time
Connor, James
Introduction
The goal of this experiment is to eliminate as many variables as possible compared to the experiment on which this is based. We will attempt to seek out individuals who possess the same amount of athletic ability, control the background of the experimenting area and run a large number of tests. We will use 4 balls of varying colors, and ten individuals who will catch each ball one time under controlled conditions. The balls will be rolled down a ramp of a controlled length, angle and height above the ground, and the background of the experimenting area will be the same for every trial. Senses, such as hearing, will be eliminated as a variable through the use of earmuffs. The topside of the ramp will be obscured to the test participant, thus eliminating their ability to discern the proximity of the ball in relation to them. The ball will be rolled down the ramp at an unspecified time and the participant will be tasked with catching the ball when it comes off the ramp. We will be using a red, white, yellow, blue and orange ball. We will use three participants with similar athletic backgrounds and run five trials with each ball color. If time permits, we will also run trials where hearing is not diminished to determine its effect on reaction time. The objective of this experiment is to eliminate all possible variables and determine if color is truly a factor in the quickness of reaction time, perception ability and hand-eye coordination.
Procedure
For our procedure, we first needed a way to roll the ball to the subject so that it would be consistent every time. We needed the same speed, trajectory, and angle. To accomplish this, we attached a 33cm long cardboard tube to the ring stand as pictured below. The tube had a diameter of 10cm, just enough to fit our standard size wiffle balls through (also pictured below). We also put the ring stand mechanism on top of an 8cm high book. With the addition of the book, the bottom of the tube (where the ball would exit) was 43.5cm
Each of the ten test subjects were given a chance to catch each colored ball twice, making for a total of six balls each, and 60 trials overall. In order to eliminate all possible variables that may interfere with our data, we kept as many things controlled as possible. Each test subject faced the white wall pictured below at exactly the same angle and distance. This is what the subject saw:
In our preliminary testing, found that it was far too easy to catch the ball if you could hear it rolling down the cardboard tube. To eliminate this factor and keep our data purely based on human reaction time, we made the test subjects wear noise-cancelling earphones.
Each subject sat on the ground on their knees facing forward with their arms by their sides. After each ball rolled, we gave the subject a moment to assume the correct position again. This is what the position looked like:
Results
After 10 test subjects that all said they had an "extensive" background with sports and other athletics, these are our results:
Out of 20 attempts, the 10 subjects caught the red ball a total of eight times.
Out of 20 attempts, the 10 subjects caught the blue ball a total of eight times.
Out of 20 attempts, the 10 subjects caught the white ball a total of ten times.
T-Test Results:
Red-Blue: p=1
Red-White: p=.613
Blue-White: p=.585
The fact that the red and blue ball's p values were exactly the same suggests that the colors red and blue have absolutely no effect on reaction time under our controlled conditions. However, there was a difference, although statistically insignificant, between the white balls and the red balls and blue balls.
Conclusions
While we sought to find a correlation between the ball color and ability to react, no obvious relationship was found. The ability to catch the balls in the small span of time with limited external stimuli seemed to be predominantly influenced by the individuals athletic and/or natural ability and not the color of the ball. This is evidenced by the trend of individuals catching either a majority of the balls or few balls whatsoever. Without a massive amount of data, we believe that it is difficult to come to results that may disprove the null hypothesis. It is possible that the p value obtained by comparing the red and blue balls to the white balls may reach a statistically significant number, although this is only a hypothesis. Another interesting aspect of the experiment to consider was that the background was white in color and the white balls were caught more times than the other colors. There may be a correlation between background color, object color and reaction time, and we recommend that any attempting to expand upon this experiment explore this particular topic.
References
Ben. "Does the Color of a Ball Affect Its Ability to Be Caught?" Wikispaces.com. 2 Feb. 2010. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://pisci.wikispaces.com/BallColorandReactions>.
Goretkin, Gustavo. "Color's Effect on Reaction Time." Goretkin.com. 2008. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://www.goretkin.com/gustavo/activities/projects/sciencefair08/Copy%20of%20FINAL_PRESENTATION.pps>.
"Reaction Time Color." Online Psychology Laboratory - Welcome. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. <http://opl.apa.org/Experiments/About/AboutReactionTimeColor.aspx>.
Breitmeyer, Bruno G., and Joshua I. Breyer. "Effects of Background Color on Reaction Time to Stimuli Varying in Size and Contrast: Inferences about Human M Channels." Vision Research 34.8 (1994): 1039-045. Print.